Already Bruised, Toyota Will Recall Nearly 2.8 Million Vehicles

The latest big Toyota recall includes the second-generation Prius hybrid.

TOKYO—Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it will recall a total of 2.77 million vehicles world-wide to fix shaft and water-pump defects, just a month after the company’s biggest recall for a single part, in a move that may once again dent its reputation for quality after the massive recalls two years ago.

Recalls don’t necessarily hurt a company’s sales in the long term. Still, vehicle reliability plays a large part in the strength of Toyota. Successive large recalls could negatively affect the company’s brand image, as seen in a series of serious glitches by the car maker in 2009 and 2010 when it came under harsh criticism for its slow response to vehicle flaws.

Toyota has since then aimed for quick responses to fix defects as it strives to regain customers’ trust.

For the latest repairs, Toyota will recall 2.76 million vehicles due to a defect in the shaft connecting the steering wheel to the gearbox, a spokeswoman for the company said. The problem affects 10 models produced between August 2000 and December 2011, including the Corolla and Avensis.

The company also will recall a further 630,000 vehicles in five models such as the second-generation Prius and the FCHV-adv fuel-cell vehicle, built between May and September 2011, to fix a defect in the water pump used in the hybrid system, the spokeswoman said.

In all, 620,000 vehicles have both the shaft and water-pump defects, including the second-generation Prius, the spokeswoman said.

There have been no reports of accidents or injuries related to these faulty parts, she added.

Comments (1 of 1)

You know it goes to show a car is complex machinery and that stuff does go wrong. It does not matter who makes the car. The way I look at it is I live in N. America so I buy my car that is made in N. America. A car is a big ticket item that is very much needed money to stay in our own country. How will we ever move forward if we don't help our money to stay in our own country